Learn what it takes to make it as an artist and win real world prizes in the process in this industry simulation game for iPhone and iPad.

August 12, 2014, Sacramento, CA – Today, music fans everywhere can step into the shoes of their favorite artist and get an inside look at what it really takes to make it as a professional performer. TourStar, conceptualized by entertainment executive Brandon Pankey of Music Players Group and brought to life with the help of Eddie Meehan of GroundCtrl, is the first iOS sim game of its kind to bring tour life and the perks and challenges that come with it to the mobile screen.

Like any new artist just starting out, first-time players of TourStar are faced with a number of decisions like; What should their look be? Should they sign with a label or stay independent? Should they go on tour right away or record an album? Who should they trust for advice?; and much more.

As the game progresses players learn that just like in real life, every decision they make has an impact on their career in some way.

As players make their way through levels of the game, touring the country, recording albums and building their in-game fame, they become eligible to win real world prize packages including concert tickets and VIP meet-and-greets with their favorite artists!

“TourStar is life in the music industry,” states Brandon Pankey. “The game is a fun way to peek into the life of a performer as they try to make it to superstardom. And the fact that gamers get to actually win real prizes like tickets and passes to their favorite artists’ shows is pretty cool too.”

Additional Features of TourStar include:
– Design a personalized 3D avatar to match players’ music style and fashion preferences.
– Virtually tour the country, gaining experience and building a fanbase.
– Record albums and release them to boost fame.
– Improve musicianship with mini-games that keep players’ instruments in tune and shows in high-gear.
– Build a virtual band, and get advice from managers, agents and record labels.

TourStar is available now for free on the iTunes App Store. Connect with TourStar on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for updates on prize packages, gaming advice, news, and more.

About TourStar:
Conceptualized by entertainment executive Brandon Pankey of Music Players Group and brought to life with the help of Eddie Meehan of GroundCtrl, a Sacramento, California-based artist engagement company and AtomicChimp, a leading mobile development shop in Redmond, Wash. Additional music for the game was produced by Roc Nation producer Jahlil Beats and Dilemma. For more information, visit www.tourstarapp.com.

Whether fluent or just beginning to learn the language, Livres Audio is an essential audio companion for iPhone users of all ages.

February 13, 2013 – Portland, Oregon – Learning French is easier and more convenient than ever with the new Livres Audio French audiobook app from Inkstone Mobile.  iPhone users can enjoy access to over 1,180 free French audiobooks, including adaptations of classic novels, short stories and poems.

Learn the proper pronunciation and intonation of the French language from native speakers while doing everyday activities and household chores. Speed up or slow down the audio playback to better enhance study and increase comprehension.

“When learning to speak French, it is typically difficult to keep up with a native speaker. We developed Livres Audio with French students in mind,” says Patrick Thompson, founder of Inkstone Mobile. “We have fine-tuned the playback feature to adjust the speed of speech without altering the pitch. For instance, beginners can slow down a reading to better navigate the proper pronunciation, while a more advanced speaker can speed it up for a greater challenge.”

Livres Audio offers the same features as other popular Inkstone Mobile apps, including a sleep timer for listening before bed and high quality audio playback. The app also features Inkstone’s signature user interface with easy navigation and a sleek audioplayer that allows you to download books over wi-fi and play them back anywhere.

Download Livres Audio today and enjoy:
*A sophisticated player with simple controls to skip forward and back, bookmark, or set sleep timers.
*Controls to speed up or slow down the playback in 40 increments without altering  pitch.
*Easy search functions to discover the most-read books from a variety of well-known authors.
*Leave bookmarks and notes to come back to your favorite parts of the selection, or to review pronunciation of a particularly tricky section.
*Download in advance and listen anywhere. No network connection necessary.
Livres Audio is available now for $1.99 in the iTunes App Store: https://itunes.apple.com/app/id572367360?mt=8

About Inkstone Mobile:
Based in Portland, Oregon, Inkstone Mobile is an independent software development company founded by Patrick Thompson. Combining a strong blend of design and development skills, Inkstone Mobile’s passion is to craft elegant, easy-to-use applications for mobile devices.

Portland, Oregon – Inkstone Mobile, maker of the top-selling speed reading and ebook reader apps, QuickReader, MegaReader, and eBook Search, is expanding their portfolio with the release of a new high quality audiobook app, Audiobooks HQ. Featuring over 5,300 free classic audiobooks, the Audiobooks HQ app gives users unlimited access to more audiobooks than any other app of its kind.

Designed with a stylish user interface and advanced navigation, Audiobooks HQ enables users to easily browse though thousands of their favorite classic audiobooks, download them, and play them back at anytime – no Wi-Fi connection necessary. Audiobooks HQ adjusts to the personal preferences of the user with additional capability to modify the playback speed in 40 steps from .5X to 2.5X without altering the pitch, leave bookmarks, set sleep timers, and skip forward and back through chapters as needed.

Perhaps, the most unique feature of the app, however, is its high quality audio. Audiobooks HQ is the only app that provides access to high quality recordings of its entire catalog.

“Our goal was to give people an easy way to find the best quality free audiobooks available, “says Inkstone Mobile’s founder Patrick Thompson. “Audiobooks HQ does so with its advanced catalog navigation filters, curated recommendations, playback features, and high bitrate downloads to give users the best listening experience available.”

Additional features of Audiobooks HQ include:
* Easy search functions. Find books by most downloaded, top rated, genres, tags, solo read books, language, recent, related books, and Inkstone’s top recommendations
* Leave a note for yourself to come back to your favorite parts of the book with the bookmarks feature
* Exclusive radio theatre audiobooks, originally aired on NPR Playhouse, beautifully performed by Globe Radio Repertory
* Access downloaded audiobooks anytime, anywhere – no network connection needed

Device Requirements:
* iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad
* Requires iOS 5.0 or later
* 15.3 MB

Pricing and Availability:
Audiobooks HQ by Inkstone Mobile 1.0.1 is $1.99 USD (or equivalent amount in other currencies) and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Books category.

Based in Portland, Oregon, Inkstone Mobile is an independent software development company founded by Patrick Thompson. Combining a strong blend of design and development skills, Inkstone Mobile’s passion is to craft elegant, easy-to-use applications for mobile devices. Copyright (C) 2012 Inkstone Mobile. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.

Montreal, Canada – Nickelodeon and Budge Studios continue to create endless educational and entertainment experiences for preschoolers by adding Team Umizoomi to the portfolio of their ever-growing storybook app series for iPhone, iPad and iPad Touch. Joining a line of successful apps like Dora’s Ballet Adventure and Dora’s Christmas Carol – Team Umizoomi Carnival introduces new characters and an engaging story that will bring added entertainment to the series.

Designed for preschoolers, the educational app invites kids to read along with their favorite Team Umizoomi characters, Milli, Geo and Bot, as they search through various locations at the carnival to help find their friend Jake’s lost stuffed animal, Bunny. Players can follow along with the story as text is highlighted while being read aloud, or narrate the story themselves.

Team Umizoomi Carnival features 14 story pages with interactive moments on each page, where tasks are changed every time the story is read. Additionally, users will have access to two bonus activities – Sticker Picture Game, inviting players to create their own carnival sticker scene by adding backgrounds from the story and placing tappable animated stickers anywhere on the page.; and Balloon Pop Carnival Game, which will help users strengthen key developmental skills by practicing color and shape recognition, grouping and patterns.

The curriculum in this app includes:
* Visual discrimination
* Positional vocabulary (over, under, around, through)
* Pattern recognition
* Colors
* Shapes
* Groups

“We’re thrilled to see kids getting excited about math and reading. Team Umizoomi makes learning fun, and this storybook app is packed with so many activities that kids won’t be able to put it down,” says Michael Elman, Creative Director at Budge Studios

With over 100 fun animations throughout the story, look for characters and objects that have a special glow to interact with them and find clues or hints to complete the task on each page as kids help Team Umizoomi find Bunny. Using actual character voices and original music, players will be entertained from start to finish time and time again.

About Nickelodeon:
Nickelodeon, now in its 33rd year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books and feature films. Nickelodeon’s U.S. television network is seen in more than 100 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for 17 consecutive years.

Pricing and Availability:
Team Umizoomi Carnival 1.0 is available for $1.99 (iPhone, iPod touch) and $3.99 (iPad) from the App Store on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

Budge Studios leads the apps for kids industry in innovation and creativity with top tier, category-defining games, books and toys. The company is changing the way kids play and learn by creating more robust and engaging experiences. Played by millions of children worldwide, Budge products are amongst the most acclaimed and popular apps. Copyright (C) 2010 Budge Studios. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc.

Happymagenta, an experienced app developer, makes its foray into adventure gaming with the release of Pilot’s Path, a helicopter simulator where players take on the role of an ex-US Air Force helicopter pilot who is forced to enter the criminal underworld

Minsk, Belarus — After disobeying orders from his commanding officers, an ace pilot faces a dishonorable discharge and finds the only way to return to the skies is by going underground. By performing services for criminal kingpins, the pilot must rebuild his reputation in order to once again retake the skies.

In Pilot’s Path, the player will be able to explore 50 islands over two vast locations. Additionally, each map is randomly generated, so every new game is a unique experience. Beautifully rendered picture cut scenes and detailed character design create an engrossing world, and the joystick controls are intuitive and unobtrusive so the player is never pulled out of the experience. The player will be able to perform plenty of missions and search exotic locations for goods to make extra money. The player’s helicopter is also fully upgradeable through the mechanic shop. Using coins earned from missions, exploration, or in-game purchase, the player can improve hull integrity, fuel and cargo capacity, maximum altitude, speed, and radar capabilities.

The game was built from the ground up to turn your iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch into a gaming console. As such, the game is meant to be best enjoyed by playing it on a big screen while using another iOS device as a remote controller. It is maximized for retina displays, iPhone 5 and full HD displays out of the box and can also be experienced on a TV or projector (HDMI, VGA, RCA cables, and AirPlay supported)

Players will be able to fly their way to glory today for $0.99 from the App Store.

For more information, please see the media kit located here:https://www.dropbox.com/sh/l0zxbqa8p6cmhp5/bxwyqfKaoA

To download the app, please click here: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/pilots-path/id537251466?ls=1&mt=8

Follow Happymagenta on Facebook and Twitter for more information about Pilot’s Path and other releases.

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Release and Controversy
At WWDC 2012, Apple announced the coming release of iOS 6, the latest software for the iPhone and iPad. Apple boasts that there will be more than 200 updates and improvements over the previous operating system, and have outlined a bevy of new features to be included in the new package.

Among these new features is what Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president for worldwide marketing, has called a “redesigned app store to allow developers to provide moreinformation about their apps.” Apple has asserted that this release will make it easier for app developers to sell their product within a fair and balanced system.

App developers have retorted that the changes are simply not enough. They criticize thestore design, claiming that is just more of the same. “The top 100 paid apps list is very static and difficult to penetrate even with significant app sales,” says Ben Hamey, co-founder of Bonobo Pte.

Despite what has been said about the app store redesign and the ease with which app developers will be able to sell their product, it is impossible to deny the popularity that this coming update to iOS will have among developers. Currently, 7 out of 10 apps are developed for iOS, as reported by mobile analytics firm Flurry.

New Features
Among the new features included in iOS 6 will be an update to Siri, including newlanguages, the ability to launch apps, and Twitter, Facebook, and Yelp integration. Another key feature will be the new Passbook. Using this feature, a user will be able to keep all their important bits of paper, such as airplane tickets, gift cards, vouchers, and concert tickets, in one consolidated place – right on their Apple mobile device. It is interesting to note, however, that Apple has decided to distance themselves from mobile payment options, a service that Googleand Microsoft have already started exploring.

Yet another important feature will be App Banners on the Safari web browser. This will allow users to have instant access to an app, straight from Safari. With one touch, they can immediately start downloading an app or just jump straight to the app if they already have itinstalled without going through the App Store. App Banners will allow an instantaneous, fluid,and functional switch from web browsing to using an app.

Facebook Integration
The most important new feature may be Facebook integration with iOS devices that will allow instant access to Facebook within web browsers, Siri, and apps. With this addition, users will be able to “like” apps on the app store and purchase apps based on what friends are using. Facebook integration will also exist within an app, so users will be able to share photos, scores,and other bits of information with their Facebook friends. Consider the social media integration incorporated in the previous incarnation of Apple’s iOS. Twitter integration was included with the main apps on iOS 5, and it allowed sharing ofphotos and in-app tweeting. This integration between apps and social media has allowed users toshare something they normally would only be able to experience by themselves with theirfriends, all with just a single sign-in. Twitter integration with iOS 5 meant developers needed tostart thinking about why users would want to share their app with other people.

Now think about the ubiquity of Facebook. Think about the way it fits into our day-to-day lives seamlessly and how it does so without us being consciously aware of it. We post incredibly personal information about ourselves and our day for friends, family, prospective employers, and even the occasional stalker. Facebook integration with iOS 6 creates anopportunity for developers to make apps that are a part of a user’s daily life. Sharing an impressive score from a game, a creative drawing, or a funny photo can become as inconspicuous as posting a status update about a delicious breakfast, a new relationship, or how weird Prometheus was. When an app can be integrated with our lives through Facebook, it becomes far more meaningful. The user doesn’t experience the app simply from the moment it is opened to the moment it is closed. Now the experience exists in a space outside of the app’s original confines, in a social universe that allows it to spread and be shared. If Facebook integration is as significant as one would hope, then iOS 6 may make apps socially relevant like never before.

Prit Patel is a Public Relations intern at Appency with an interest in technology, culture, and viewers like you.

Quizboard – Now Available in the App Store!

Words with Friends meets Trivial Pursuit in this great new trivia game now on iPhone and iPod Touch

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Sacramento, CA    Nov 30, 2011 – New York, New York

It’s been a busy last few months for CB Labs, who published their first game The Adventures of Timmy: Run, Kitty, Run with developer studio Rain Interactive. From launching at the Adobe MAX Keynote back in October, to being featured in the Apple “New and Noteworthy” section, it was still a huge surprise when the game showed up in the finals of the Mashable Awards for the Best Mobile Game category.

“We’re going up against the likes of Angry Birds and Cut the Rope,” Creative Director Adam Kahn said. “That’s huge in and of itself, especially for a game that’s only been out for about a month and a half.”

The game itself tells the tale of a young school boy named Timmy who wears a cat suit to school one day. While all the other kids on the playground make fun of Timmy, one girl named Kitty tries to befriend him. Unfortunately, Mitch, the schools bully, has already taken a liking to Kitty and kidnaps her. Timmy must find a way to stop Mitch and his minions and get Kitty back safe and sound.

About Rain Interactive:
Rain is an internationally recognized and awarded digital creative software agency dedicated to providing clients with solutions that allow their customers to connect with them wherever they are through the web, desktop, or mobile. Clients include HP, Google, Ancestry, Sony Music, Universal Music, Hess, Corona, Adobe and Skullcandy.

Device Requirements:
* iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, 2/3/4G iPod touch and iPad
* Requires iOS 4.1 or later
* 96.2 MB

Pricing and Availability:
The Adventures of Timmy: Run, Kitty, Run 1.2 is $1.99 USD (or equivalent amount in other currencies) and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category.

The Adventures of Timmy: Run, Kitty, Run 1.2
Purchase and Download
YouTube Video
Screenshots

In 2010, Crossborders created a subsidiary CB Labs for the sole purpose to create creative intellectual property in the digital products category. Leveraging smart phone and tablet distribution outlets CB Labs has launched its first iPhone/iPad game The Adventures of Timmy: Run Kitty Run. Copyright (C) 2011 CB Labs. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone, iPod and iPad are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.

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Brian Collins
Account Executive
916-765-5949
United States

This week Apple continues to encourage iOS users to consume their news via the iPhone and iPad by prominently featuring news apps in the itunes home page’s “News Stand” section. Next to the usual lineup, CNN, the Wall St. Journal and Time Magazine is a new player.  The ‘Marilyn Monroe’ of news, Blancspot is a sexy and modern take on a news industry badly in need of a facelift.

The Apple iPhone is defined by its user experience. “Sleek,” “Sophisticated” and “Stylish” are only some of the words that come to mind when faced with a shiny new iPhone or iPad. Traditionally, national and global news coverage does not have the same sort of adjectives associated with them. Things like “depressing,” “flat” or “biased” are often found more closely tied to how the public views mass news media.  Pulling the two together is Blancspot, a revolutionary new way to experience and interact with the news on the iPhone that combines photojournalists elements and solid news reporting with social media and cause activation tools.

The idea has intrigued Apple, which is now prominently featuring Blancspot in the iTunes App Store for the second week running. “We were thrilled at the response we got to Blancspot from Apple,” said Camille LeBlanc, CEO of Blancspot Media. “The idea of Blancspot fits hand in hand with the ideology of Apple, where not only is function paramount, but the entire experience of the user. Blancspot is not just news you read – its news you experience.”

Being on Apple’s good side has its advantages. In the first 24 hours of its release, Blancspot shot to the top five of the best selling news applications, where it stayed for a week. In that time, its sales also landed it the number three position in the coveted top grossing news apps.

The goal of Blancspot is to give consumers a full 360 view of news, allowing them to form their own judgments and become a part of it, either through discussion or active engagement. To do this, Blancspot provides:

• Stunning images from top photojournalists around the world presented in cinematic sequences set to an ever evolving soundtrack.
• An unbiased summary of complex topics with links to relevant external sources on both sides of an story
• Engagement with up to the minute social conversation through a targeted look into Twitter
• The ability to engage with or create causes related to the news

Blancspot is currently available for the iPhone and iPod Touch, and to celebrate its successful launch and featuring by Apple has reduced the price to $1.99 for a limited time . An iPad optimized edition of Blancspot is scheduled for a mid September debut.  For up to the second headlines and updates, follow Blancspot Media on Twitter @BlancspotMedia, or on Facebook.

About Blancspot Media

Blancspot Media LLC, a privately held, privately financed company headquartered in San Francisco, CA, and was founded in 2009 by Camille LeBlanc, co-founder and former CEO of Roubini Global Economics, a leading macroeconomic information service and strategy firm. The Blancspot team is made up of technology and media veterans whose experience comes from companies such as Yahoo!, Dow Jones, MobiTV, Sega, Apple, Nokia, NBC, and more. The company raised an angel round of funding from private investors led by veteran Hollywood film producer Frank Marshall of Kennedy/Marshall Company.